Mold for casting printers&#39; leads and the like.



A. L. KNIGHT.

MOLD FOR ASTING PRINTERS LEADS AND THE LIKE.

APPLICATION FILED 1UNE5| 191?.

Patented Feb. 19, 1918.

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AMOS L. KNIGHT, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO LANSTON MONO- TYPE MACHINE COMPANY, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPORATION OF VIRGINIA.

MOLD FOB CASTING PRINTERS LEADS AND THE LIKE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 19, 1918.

Application filed June 5, 1917. Serial No. 172,937.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, AMos L. KNIGHT, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Philadelphia, county of Philadelphia, State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Molds for Casting Printers Leads and the like; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, and to the characters of reference marked thereon.

My invention relates generally to molds of the type disclosed, for example, in United States Letters-Patent No. 1,222,415 dated April 10th, 1917. Such molds are adapted as part of a type casting machine to produce printers leads, rules, etc., in fused sections to form strips of indefinite length, or in non-fused sections of predetermined length.

The patented apparatus, generally speaking, comprises a mold having an opening for the entrance of molten metal and being open at one end for the exit of the congealed metal, means for feeding forwardly the congealed metal and means for forcing molten metal behind the forwardly fed congealed metal. The operations of casting and feeding are carried on in timed relation to each other and are repeated in accordance with the amount of product desired. For feedin J the congealed metal a reciprocatory mold lade is shown in the said patent, which blade advances, when the metal in the mold cavity is congealed, to push said metal forwardly toward the exit opening of the mold, and retreats thereafter to leave a cavity for the reception of the molten metal to form the succeeding cast.

In casting typemetal elements having a printing edge, a matrix formed to produce such edge, is used, while in the case of pro ducing non-printing elements it is usual to employ a blank matrix which in certain cases may comprise a filler blade having a portion extending between the type blocks of the mold. The present invention relates, more particularly to matrices of the kind.- last mentioned and the object'of the invention is to produce a mold construction and figures indicate the parts thereof in which a single mold blade may be used in conjunction with interchangeable matrices for casting elements of any desired height. In the mounting of cuts upon bases of typemetal elements of printers forms, it is often necessary to adapt the height of the base material to the different-thicknesses of the cuts. The present invention, as will therefore be readily seen, is of considerable practical importance, particularly in connection with the mounting of cuts, because it enables the operator to produce base material of the height desired by merely selecting the proper matrix, just as he selects a matrix for producing the desired rule or border design, and without tampering with the delicate adjustments of the mold or disturbing the mold blade or other major part of the mold construction in any way.

In the accompanying drawings- Fi re 1 is a sectional view of a mold embodying the present invention, the section being substantially in the plane of the mold blade.

Fig. 2 is a cross section of the mold, substantially on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the blank matrlx or filler blade shown in Fig. 1 and Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a matrix similar to that of Figs. 1 and 3 but adapted when used with the mold blade of Fig. 1 to produce leads of different height from those produced from the arrangement of Fig. 1.

Like reference characters in the several same parts.

Inasmuch as apparatus substantially corresponding to that of the patent hereinbefore mentioned has gone into extensive public use and is well understood in the art, it has been thought unnecessary to illustrate herein the operating mechanism or the stops for the mold blade and the means whereby the molten metal is injected into the mold cavity nor is it necessary, for an understanding of the present improvement, to illustrate in detail the means for severing the gate from the side of the strip, especially as the operating mechanism and the metal melting and injecting mechanism substantially corresponds to mechanism found in the type casting machines manufactured by the Lanston Monotype Machine Company, which have been in extensive public use for many years.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, it will be seen that the mold illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2, embodies a mold base block 3 which is formed with a channel therethrough in the direction of themovement of the mold blade, thus providing front and rear upwardly extending portions 4 which are adapted to be connected across the top of the mold by a tie bar or bars 5. Confined within the channel extending through the mold base are the type or side blocks be tween which the cavity for the reception of the molten metal is formed, and these type or side blocks are preferably in the form of bars which extend beyond the mold cavity in each direction and are adapted to be separated a distance which will determine the width of the mold cavity and con sequently the point size of the element being cast. The rear type or side block 8 (Fig. 2) is preferably formed with a smooth inner face and constitutes one wall of the mold cavity as well as the wall of the passage in which the mold blade works and of the 'exit opening in which the congealed metal is retained during the injection of molten metal to form a succeeding cast. The front type or side block may be of similar construction and arranged to be placed in opposition to the block 8 but it is preferably formed in two sections, 9 and 10, for convenience of manufacture, inasmuch as it has been found desirable to provide at one side of the mold cavity a channel and exit opening through which air-and a portion of the molten metal from the mold cavity may escape in the form of a more or less spongy mass, which, for convenience, may be-called a gate lying at one side of the element and adapted to be severed there from.

By reference to Fig. 2 it will be seen that between the two sections 9 and 10 there is 'formed a narrow space which widens out within the type block in the form of a channel which is conveniently of dove-tail or triangular cross section, as indicated at 12. The channel 12 and the narrow en-. trance slot 11 which communicates with the mold cavity, are preferably slightly tapered or of increasing cross section toward the exit end of the block so as to prevent binding during the movement of the gate toward the exit of the channel.

Where the front type block is made in two sections, as just described. the upper section 9 is preferably made rigid with the lower section 10 by being fixed accurately "thereto and supported by an upwardly extending portion 10 of the section 10, to which it is connected by screws or other suitable fastenings, as shown clearly in Fig. 2.

The two type blocks forming between them the mold cavity and mold b ade channel are positioned laterally of the mold base, 1

by a packing plate 17 placed back of the rear type block and by the pressure screw 18 passing through the front projection 4 of the mold base and adapted to operate against the front type block. This pressure screw, in the preferred construction, is operated periodically in time with the feeding zle opening 20 through which the molten metal is injected into the mold cavity through a nozzle 20.

In the specific embodiment of the invention illustrated herein the mold is adapted for the making of printers leads which are of less height than the full height of the mold cavity and to reduce the height of the mold cavity to produce a lead of the desired height a matrix in the form of a filler blade 57 is interposed between the type or side blocks above the front end of the mold blade. This filler blade 57 is conveniently in the form of a thin blade which will fill the space between the side blocks and it is provided with upwardly extending overhanging portions 57 adapted for coiipera- 'tion with a filler blade support 59. The

latter is clamped in position by a clamp 25 such as is ordinarily employed for clamping a matrix in position over the mold cavity.

The inner edge of the body portion 57 of the filler blade 57 is provided with stepped surfaces comprising a rear portion 58 for sliding engagement with the upper surface of the mold blade and a forward portion 58, the latter forming a wall of the mold cavity against which the cast is made. The rear step 58 extends inwardly of the mold beyond theforward cast receiving step 58 and both steps are substantially parallel and are joined by asurface 58" substantially at right angles to said stepped portions, said surface 58 being in efi'ect a continuation of the forward end of the mold blade when the latter is in retracted or casting position as shown in Fig. 1. Said forward end of the mold blade is preferably a plane surface perpendicular to the base block. The height of the cast .is determined by the distance, while the parts are in casting position, between the matrix portion 58 and the lower wall of the mold cavity upon which the mold blade slides. A number of matrices may be made in which the portion 58 varies as to its distance from the lower wall of the mold cavity, the portion 58 being unvarying in this respect. Any one of these matrices, as will readily be observed, may be used with a single blade to produce the particular height of product desired; for example, the matrix of Fig. 4 may be used in lieu of that of Fig. 3 with the blade of Fig. 1. The change from one matrix to another obviously may be made Without removing the mold from the casting apparatus and Without disturbing the mold blade or its fastenings, it' being necessary for this purpose merely to remove the matrix fastening devices. 'A variety of heights may thus be had by keeping in stock a supply of these matrices whereas heretofore it, was necessary to purchase a number of mold blades of. different heights and a separate matrixfor each of such blades.

The mold blade 27 which is mounted to reciprocate between the side blocks is of a thickness which corresponds to the point size of the material being cast and it is of substantially the same thickness as the filler blade 57. It is guided by the side blocks and by guide extensions 31, 32, the forward and rearward limits of its movement being determined by suitable stops not shown. The forward portion of the blade is of reduced height which is less than the height of the material to be cast, being formed with a cut-away portion 56 which works'in beneath the portion 58 of the filler blade.

The mold blade itself is provided with means whereby its operating member 35 may be readily attached thereto, such means conveniently and preferably consisting of a centrally located circular bearing into which a journal stud 36 on the end of the member 35 is adapted to work. Immediately forward. of this circular bearingthe mold blade is formed with an aperture 28* preferably rectangular for the reception of a lateral projection of similar shape formed on the rear end of the gate pusher 28. The projection of the gate pusher fits loosely within the aperture in the mold blade so that the pusher may without binding adapt itself vertically as may be required by its guide channel 12; the parts are preferably rectangular so that in any position a large bearing surface is provided.

In operation the mold blade is reciprocated from a point in advance of the nozzle opening 20 to a point in rear thereof and molten metal is injected through said nozzle opening when the blade is in the retacted position shown. The forward wall of the mold cavity is not a structural part of the mold and is not shown; it is formed- At the time of casting, as will readily be understood by those familiar with the art,

this previously cast typemetal is clamped tightly by the screw 18 in position to withstand the pressure of the entering molten metal.

I claim 1. A mold for printers lead and rule casting machines, embodying the following instrumentalities, to-wit: blocks forming the bottom and side walls of the mold cavity, a mold blade of less height than and working between the side blocks, an interchangeable matrix mounted between the side blocks above the level of the mold blade to form the top wall of the mold cavity and means for closing the mold cavity between the end of the matrix and mold blade and forming with the mold blade in the casting position thereof the end wall of the mold cavity, whereby a mold blade of fixed height may be used with interchangeable matrices of different height.

2. A mold for printers lead and rule casting machines, embodying the following instrumentalities, to-wit: side blocks between which the mold cavity is formed, a base block, a mold blade mounted to reciprocate between said side blocks, and in contact with said base block and a matrix having a cast receiving portion and a mold blade engaging portion, the latter lying between said side blocks and extending inwardly of the mold beyond said cast receiving portion.

3. A mold for printers lead and rule casting machines, embodying the following instrumentalities, to-wit: side blocks between which the mold cavity is formed, a base 100 block, a mold blade of less height than the element to be cast, said blade being mounted to reciprocate between said side blocks, and in contact with said base block, and an exchangeable matrix having a rearward por- 105 tion extending between said side blocks into contact with said blade and a forward cast receivingportion located during the casting operation at a distance from the base block equal to the height of the element being cast.

4. A mold for printers lead and rule casting machines, embodying the following instrumentalities, to-wit: side blocks between which the mold cavity is formed, a base block, a mold blade mounted upon said base block and between said side blocks and provided with a forward end substantially perpendicular to said base block, said blade being adapted to move intermittently forwardly to eject cast metal from the mold and rearwardly to casting position to form the mold cavity, and a matrix having stepped inner surfaces, the forward step being adapted to receive the metal to be cast, the rearward step extending between said side blocks inwardly beyond said forward step to contact with said mold blade and the surface connecting said steps constituting a continuation of the forward end of the mold blade in said casting position of the latter.

5. A mold for printers lead and rule cast- -ing machines, embodying the following instrumentalities, to-wit: side blocks between trix having a forward cast receiving ortion and a rearward portion, the latter lylng between said side blocks and extending inwardly of the mold beyond said cast receiving portion, and means for feeding forwardly metal congealed in said mold cavity to form a space for the reception of a succeeding cast.

6. A mold for printers lead and rule casting machines comprising a base block, sideblocks mounted thereon, a mold blade mounted upon said base block to reciprocate between said side blocks, a filler blade support mounted upon said side blocks, a filler blade depending from said support and extending ing provided with a forward, cast receiving portion and a rearward portion extending inwardly of the mold beyond said cast receiving portion, said rearward portion being in sliding contact with said mold blade.

7. A filler blade for printers lead and rule casting machines, comprising a body ,portion having a thickness equal to the point size of the material to be cast, one edge of said body portion bein provided with stepped surfaces, one of w ich surfaces is adapted to slidably engage with the mold blade and the other to form a wall of the mold cavity,

the body portion being provided on the side opposite said surfaces with overhanging extensions for cooperation with the filler blade support.

AMOS L. KNIGHT. 

